The Most Beautiful Sunset The World Has Ever Seen
by Boudicca1
Summary: In which, for once, one of the Doctor's opponents accepts the Doctor's offer to find her another planet to inhabit. Based on the audio The Rising Night, the transcription of which is linked on my ao3 (QueenBoudica)


"I know how you feel. You probably already know that. But I can help you, if you let me. We can find you a new home, anywhere in the universe. Away from Earth. What d'you reckon?"

Offer made, the Doctor watched as the Baobhan Sith regarded him from where she stood, encircled by horses. He hardly dared to breathe as he waited for her response, though he would be lying if he said that he thought she'd accept. After having lost so much and being burned so badly it was unlikely she would wish for anything but vengeance. But he had to try.

Against his will, his mind was cast back to that Christmas years ago, where he'd stopped the Titanic from crashing into Buckingham Palace, but not before the loss of a very remarkable woman, as well as almost all of the other passengers and crew. It was as he stood there at the end, having only managed to save three people, that Mr. Copper had noticed what he was thinking.

If you could choose, Doctor, if you could choose who lived and who died, he'd said, well, that would make you a monster.

And the Doctor would do all that he could to avoid making that decision. Which is why he hoped against hope that the Baobhan Sith would agree to come with him.

Every time, he offered to find a compromise, to solve problems without more bloodshed. The Sycorax, the Racnoss, the Ilk, even the Sontarans. And every time, they refused. There was no reason for this time to be any different. Except for the fact that the Doctor needed it to be because he wasn't sure what he would do if it wasn't.

So there he stood, waiting for her to decide whether or not to accept his help. Hoping that just this once, things would be different. And, wonder of wonders—

"Very well."

—they were. The slender figure inside the circle had spoken at last.

"I will come with you, Doctor."

"What?" burst Patrick, pulling up short. "Doctor, she has gorged herself upon our villagers, surely you cannot mean to set this creature free!"

Wesley and Owen voiced their agreement as well, strenuously objecting to the idea of letting the murderer of their compatriots remain alive and unharmed. Unfortunately for them, in their bluster, they had forgotten to maintain their circle. No longer hampered by the horseshoes, the Baobhan Sith slithered past the men and joined the Doctor.

"I will meet you by your ship," she said, looking at the approaching group of angry men, before vanishing into the air, no longer bound by the iron that prevented her from traveling as she wished.

"And I didn't even get to say 'don't wander off,'" mused the Doctor. "I quite like that bit. Oh well, allons-y, Henry!" he encouraged, as he urged the horse into a gallop toward the TARDIS and away from the trio of angry Scotsmen.

.-.. .. -. . -... .-. . .- -.-

By the time the Doctor arrived at the TARDIS, the clearing was illuminated with the light of the moon, which appeared on a backdrop of glittering stars.

As he approached the doors and inserted the key, a thin hand snaked onto his shoulder. He turned slightly, angling his body towards the newcomer, though still mostly facing the door. Up close, the Baobhan Sith's eyes shone an unnatural icy blue, and her skin was so pale that, were she human, her veins would've been visible underneath.

Smiling at her, the Doctor finished unlocking the door and swung it open, striding inside. His companion followed, shutting the door behind her as she looked around in awe.

"She's a marvel of engineering, truly. I thought the glimpses of her I saw in your thoughts must've been exaggerations; it's a wonder they do her justice."

The TARDIS hummed approvingly in the back of the Doctor's head. She loved admiration, the vain old thing.

The Baobhan Sith finished her surveyal of the ship and turned her gaze back onto the Time Lord. "Very well, Doctor," she began. "You claim you can find me a new home, time to prove it."

With that, the Doctor jumped into action. He started up the ship, flipping levers and pushing buttons, and it began to move, while he prattled on all the while.

"Right! Judging by your diet, you've got to have a great deal of iron, so, stuck on Earth's relatively low-iron environment, you've been compensating for that by draining the humans' blood. But if you were in an environment that was actually suited to your needs, such as..." he paused as he flipped one last lever and the ship came to a halt.

"The crimson mountains of Aeryl IV! They've got some of the best sunsets on this side of the galaxy, and some of the native lifeforms—there's one species that's quite a lot like the Q'Alai of Batraxial II—live in these red ponds that are chock-full of all the nutrients you could possibly need. You won't need to kill anybody to survive here; in fact, just inhabiting the area should in theory provide enough nutritional—"

"Doctor," she interrupted.

He blinked, looking up as if remembering that he had an audience. "Oh, right. Well, anyway, this planet should be a suitable location for you. The local population are telepathic too, so I should imagine you'll fit in quite well around here."

She nodded. "Thank you, Doctor."

"No, thank you," he grinned at her. "For deciding to come with me and leave those humans alone. I know what it must have been like, to let that go and—"

"No." She spat, cutting him off once more. "I let nothing go. I will resent those miserable wenches who killed my sisters for the rest of my days. But I am no fool, Doctor. I have been in your head. I have seen what happens to those who refuse you. I have no wish to end up like them."

"Ah."

The Doctor looked at her and for a moment there, she shivered, though she could not feel the cold. In his eyes lay eternities. They were filled with pain and rage and a deep, ever-present sorrow, and the Baobhan Sith considered herself lucky that she'd only been in his mind mere moments. She wasn't sure what would have become of her had she seen more than the slightest glimpse of this strange, mad creature.

"Farewell, Doctor," she said.

And with that, she stepped out of the TARDIS, onto the rich, red soil of Aeryl IV, towards the crimson mountains and away from that ancient, lonely being.


End file.
